Guard arrangement for shoe finishing apparatus



June 28, 1966 R, SMITH 3,257,675

GUARD ARRANGEMENT FOR SHOE FINISHING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 4, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig-'1 71 66 59.52 64 42 56 V 7Z 35 36 .58 .l 51 "5"? if 56 I 1 76 I l 5- l I INVENTOR.

6&1; wm

GUARD ARRANGEMENT FOR SHOE FINISHING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 4, 1964 R. E. SMITH June 28, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. ROY 5. SMITH BY 4770 NEYS United States Patent Patented June 28, 19 56 ice 3,257,675 GUARD ARRANGEMENT FOR SHOE FINISHING APPARATUS Roy E. Smith, Atlanta, Ga, assiguor to The Auto-Soler Company, a corporation of Georgia Filed Aug. 4, 1964, Ser. No. 387,428 8 Claims. (Cl. 12-90) This invention relates generally to shoe finishing apparatus and in particular to an arrangement for locating a work positioning guard element to exceptional advantage for use in shoe repairing operations.

Shoe repair equipment of the type used for performing the finishing steps in a repair operation normally provide a rotating cutter element for the initial finish trimming of heel lifts and the like. It is necessary, in this operation, to protect the shoe being repaired from scarring by the cutter element and this is generally done by disposing a stationary work positioning guard thereat.

However, the necessity ter element for sharpening or replacement has heretofore also necessitated the removal of the associated guard element: In addition to the time and energy expended in removing and replacing the guard element, it also had to be reset in proper relation to the sharpened or replaced cutter element by a tedious and timeconsuming operation. The present invention eliminates these problems by providing a mounting arrangement which permits the cutter element to be removed without removing the guard element and additionally provides uniquely for quickly and easily setting the position of the guard element in relation to the cutter element. Also, the guard arrangement of the present invention incorporates an improved provision for disposing a further guard element concentrically about the cutter element to determine the exposed cutter element width in a manner that maintains the setting of this further guard element always freely adjustable.

Generally characterized, the present invention comprises a pivotally mounted means having the work positioning guard element attached thereto for selectively disposing the guard element at its normal position adjacent the rotating cutter element and at a second displaced position clearing the cutter element for removal from its associated drive shaft, together with means for shiftably setting the pivotally mounted means in proper lateral relation to the axis of the rotating cutter element; while the previously mentioned further guard element is carried in concentric shrouding relation to the opposite side of the cutter element for selective axial adjustment to set the exposed cutter element width readily and safely without stopping the cutter rotation.

These and other features of the present invention are described in further detail below in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation, partly broken away and sectioned, of a representative shoe finishing apparatus embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a left side elevation corresponding generally to FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary front elevation corresponding generally to FIG. 1 and illustrating the cutter guard element in a second location;

FIG. 4 is a'plan detail arrangement substantially as seen in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is a sectional detail corresponding generally to of the cutter guard mounting from the position 4-4 FIG. 4 and taken substantially at the line 5-.5 of FIG. 2.-

The shoe finishing apparatus of the illustrated embodiment is of the same general type as that disclosed in US. Patent No. 3,066,331, wherein a variety of finishing elements are mounted on a common shaft for selective use with great convenience and efficiency.

of frequently removing the cut- FIG. 1 illustrates a horizontally disposed drive shaft 10 journaled in a frame structure 12 and having an end portion 14 of reduced diameter extending from a shoulder 16 on which are mounted a sole-trimming cutter element 18 abutting the shoulder 16, a rotary cutter guard 20 abutting the first cutter element 18, and a sleeve member 22 in abutting relation with the rotary cutter guard 20 as is explained in further detail in the aforementioned US. Patent No. 3,066,331. A second heel-trimming cutter element 24 is mounted on shaft 10 and normally held in place by a nut member 26 that engages a threaded terminal extent 28 of the shaft 10; the nut member 26 preferably being formed with an outwardly disposed edge-set portion 30 as well as an inwardly directed portion 31 of reduced diameter for bottoming at the cutter element 24 and an intermediate nut portion 33 for tightening or loosening it. 7

Additionally, an edge-set portion is provided at 32 on the shrouding guard element carried by the shaft 10 at the first cutter element 18 and held at a desired setting with respect thereto by a set screw 34 as described in further detail in US. Patent No. 3,066,331.

The frame 12 also carries a sleeve bracket 36 in spaced parallel relation above the shaft 10 for receiving a stub shaft 38 which is locked thereto by -a set screw 46, and which is fixed in turn to a mounting post 42 that has an interiorly threaded collar portion 44 depending therefrom with a concentric disposition about the shaft 10. Within this collar portion 44 an exteriorly threaded shank portion of a shrouding guard element 46 is carried for adjustment in relation to the heel-trimming cutter element 24. The guard element 46 extends concentrically at 48 in shrouding relation to the cutter element 24 so that its extending edge determines the exposed cutter element width, and this width may be selectively set through adjustment of the threaded engagement at the collar portion 44 provided to carry the guard element 46. By this arrangement, the shrouding guard element 46 is always maintained free for setting the cutter width adjustment conveniently and precisely during operating rotation of the cutter element 24, which provides a substantial advantage in shoe repairing operations where the suitable cutter width for the heel piece to be finished varies frequently from piece to piece and the finishing is not done to the best effect unless a suitable cutter width is employed for each piece. This arrangement of 'the shrouding guard element 46 also has particular significance in relation to the earlier mentioned work positioning guard element that is addition-ally provided at the cutter element 24 according to the present invention as further below, and that incorporates running adjustment features too that materially improve the operating effectiveness of the. entire heel finishing unit. The threaded engagement of the shank portion of the shrouding guard element 46 in the collar portion 44 should be fitted nicely so that the guard element will tend to hold a given setting unless purposely moved. A spring positioned brass plunger or the like (not shown) may be employed to provide an additional drag for this purpose, if desired. The arrangement of this shrouding guard element 46 is disclosed further and claimed in copending application Serial No. 434,416, filed February 23, 1965.

The main body portion of the mounting post 42, above its depending collar portion 44, has a pivot shaft 50 fixed therein at 51 and extending therethrough to engage a clevis member 52 for carrying the additional work positioning guard element 54 that is provided at the cutter element 24 as mentioned above. The guard element 54 is attached to the clevis member 52 by screws 56 at a shank portion 58 thereof in which an elongated slot 60 is provided to allow initial disposition of an annular work posidescribed tioning portion 62 of the guard element 54 over the threaded end portion 28 of shaft 10 and in general coaxial relation sidewise of the cutter element 24; a washer plate 64 being provided with the screws 56 for clamping the guard element 54 securely in place on the clevis member 52 at its initially arranged disposition.

The clevis member 52 is slidably disposed on its pivot shaft t) subject to the bias of a compression spring 66 carried by the shaft 50 below a flanged head portion 68 thereof to act downwardly (i.e., toward the mounting post 42) on the clevis member 52. This bias is opposed by an adjustment screw 70 fitted with a manipulating knob 71 and carried by the clevis member 52 in spaced parallel relation to the pivot shaft 50 for abutment at an inclined surface 72 of a groove formation in the mounting post 42 so that the abutting end 74 of adjustment screw 79 tends to ride down surface 72 under the biasing force of spring 60. A further positioning screw 76 is additionally carried by the clevis member 52 in right angular relation to abut the mounting post 42 in opposition to this riding tendency of adjustment screw 70 at the groove surface 72 so as to provide an adjustable stop means by which the working disposition of the guard element 54 can be set at a proper sidewise spacing with respect to the cutter element 24.

When the cutter element 24 is used for heel-trimming by a shoe repairman the work is presented within the arcuate portion of the cutter path indicated by the reference character A in FIG. 2, and usually more or less centrally of this arcuate cutter path portion A. Consequently, as the principal purpose of the guard element 54 is to protect the heel block from scarring during finish trimming of a top lift being installed thereon, it is particularly important to have the work positioning portion 62 of guard element 54 set in proper relation to the working cutter path portion A. For this reason the axis of the adjusting screw 79 is arranged to extend in perpendicular relation to the chord C of the arcuate cutter path portion A so that the proper work positioning setting can always be readily obtained by simple adjustment from the manipulating knob 71 even when the cutter 24 is running. The chord C and the axis of the adjusting screw 70 are related in this manner at about 45 with respect to vertical.

The above-described mounting arrangement for the work positioning guard element 54 also provides for its previously mentioned displacement, as illustrated in FIG. 3, whenever the cutter element 24 needs to be cleared for removal from the shaft portion 28 to allow sharpening or replacement or the like. Such displacement is accomplished simply by grasping the guard element 54 at its work positioning portion 62 and pulling it away from the cutter element 24 so that it is shifted from the FIG. 1 disposition to that illustrated in FIG. 3. Shifting of the guard element 54 in this manner is allowed by the slidable arrangement of the clevis member 52 on its pivot shaft 50 and the yieldable bias applied to the adjusting screw 70 from the spring 66 in relation to the mounting post groove surface 72. As the groove surface 72 is inclined downwardly to the right as seen in FIGS. 1, 4, and 5, the biased tendency of the abutting adjusting screw end 74 to ride down this surface 72 acts to maintain the guard element 54 normally at its working FIG. 1 position. But whenever it is grasped for shifting away from this position, the adjusting screw end 74 is free to ride upwardly on the inclined surface 72 and out of the groove formation thereat against the bias of spring 66 because the clevis member 52 is slidably shiftable on its pivot axis 50 to accommodate this action. The result is a relative pivoting of the clevis member 52 on the mounting post 42 that carries the guard element 54 to the inactive displaced position seen in FIG. 3 so that the cutter element 24 is cleared for removal easily from the end portion 28 of drive shaft 10. However, such displacement of the guard element 54 does not lose or in any way disturb its previously set operating adjustment, for upon replacement of the cutter element 24 it is only necessary to swing the guard element back towards its FIG. 1 position to have the adjusting screw 70 find the groove surface 72 again and ride downwardly thereon until the positioning screw 76 comes to bear on the mounting post 42 as a limiting stop that restores the previously set active position of the guard element 54 as if it had never been displaced.

The present invention has been described in detail above for purposes of illustration only and is not intended to be limited by this description or otherwise except as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In shoe finishing apparatus of the character described including a rotating cutter element mounted on a drive shaft adjacent an end thereof and a stationary work positioning guard member normally disposed sidewise thereat in general coaxial relation, the improvement which comprises mounting means disposed in fixed relation to the axis of said rotating cutter element, first means pivotally mounted on said mounting means and having said guard member fixed thereon for selectively disposing said guard member at said normal position and at a second displaced position clearing said rotating cutter for removal of the cutter element from said drive shaft, and second means for shiftably setting said first means with respect to the axis of said cutter element.

2. In shoe finishing apparatus of the character described, the improvement defined in claim 1 and further characterized in that said second means comprises an adjusting screw engaging said first means for shiftably setting the same with respect to said mounting means.

3. In shoe finishing apparatus of the character described, the improvement defined in claim 2 and further characterized in that said rotating cutter element has work normally applied thereto at a relatively limited arcuate portion of its rotating path and said first means is shiftable in perpendicular relation to the chord of said arcuate portion.

4. In shoe finishing apparatus of the character described including a rotating cutter element mounted on a drive shaft adjacent an end thereof and a stationary work positioning guard member normally disposed sidewise thereat in general coaxial relation, the improvement which comprises mounting means disposed in fixed relation to the axis of said rotating cutter element, first means pivotally mounted on said mounting means and having said guard member fixed thereon for selectively disposing said guard member at said normal position and at a second displaced position clearing said rotating cutter for removal of the cutter from said drive shaft, yieldable means biasing said first means along its pivot axis toward said mounting means, an abutment element extending from said first means toward said mounting means in spaced parallel relation with respect to said pivot axis, and an inclined surface portion presented by said mounting means angularly opposing said abutment element and the bias thereon when said guard member is disposed at said normal position and facing away from the direction in which said first means must move for selectively disposing said guard member at said second displaced position.

5. In shoe finishing apparatus of the character described, the improvement defined in claim 4 and further characterized in that a second stationary work positioning guard member is disposed at the opposite side of said cutter element from said first mentioned guard member and extends concentrically in shrouding relation to said cutter element for determining the exposed width thereof, and in that means are provided to carry said second guard member for adjustment in the axial direction of said drive shaft for selectively setting said exposed cutter element width, said last mentioned means maintaining said second guard member always free for said adjustment.

6. In shoe finishing apparatus of the character described, the improvement defined in claim 4 and further characterized in that said abutment element comprises a screw member adjustably engaging said first means for shiftably setting the same in relation to said mounting means.

7. In shoe finishing apparatus of the character described, the improvement defined in claim 6 and further characterized in that said rotating cutter element has work normally applied thereto at a relatively limited arcuate portion of its rotating path, and in that said screw member and said parallel pivot axis extend axially in perpendicular relation to the chord of said arcuate portion. a

8. In shoe finishing apparatus of the character described, the improvement defined in claim 4 and further characterized in that a second abutment element extends adjustably from said first means toward said mounting means for abutment therewith to determine said normal guard member position in opposition to the effective force of said first mentioned abutment element and the bias thereon acting against said inclined surface portion.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Gallagher 12-90 Vose et al 1290 McDowell 1290 McGrath 12-90 Blair 12-90 Warren 1290 Skelton 12-1 15 FRANK I. COHEN, Primary Examiner.

JORDAN FRANKLIN, Examiner. P. D. LAWSON, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A SHOE FINISHING APPARATUS OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED INCLUDING A ROTATING CUTTER ELEMENT MOUNTED ON A DRIVE SHAFT ADJACENT AND END THEREOF AND A STATIONARY WORK POSITIONING GUARD MEMBER NORMALLY DISPOSED SIDEWISE THEREAT IN GENERAL COAXIAL RELATION, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES MOUNTING MEANS DISPOSED IN FIXED RELATION TO THE AXIS OF SAID ROTATING CUTTER ELEMENT, FIRST MEANS PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID MOUNTING MEANS AND HAVING SAID GUARD MEMBER FIXED THEREON FOR SELECTIVELY DISPOSING SAID GUARD MEMBER AT SAID NORMAL POSITION AND AT A SECOND DISPLACED POSITION CLEARING SAID ROTATING CUTTER FOR REMOVAL OF THE CUTTER ELEMENT FROM SAID DRIVE SHAFT, AND SECOND MEANS FOR SHIFTABLY SETTING SAID FIRST MEANS WITH RESPECT TO THE AXIS OF SAID CUTTER ELEMENT. 